Art Thief May Sue Museum for Making Heist Too Easy

Accused thief Radu Dogaru says he's a victim in the $24-million art heist that he perpetrated. Dogaru says the crime was too easy and that the Kunsthal Museum should be sued for negligence .

Dogaru and six other Romanians stole paintings by Picasso, Monet, and Gauguin from Rotterdam’s Kunsthal museum in only three minutes last October.

“I could not imagine that a museum would exhibit such valuable works with so little security,” said Dogaru during a Tuesday court hearing.

Dogaru faces a maximum of 20 years in prison. He confessed his crime to the Dutch police.

His lawyer, Catalin Dancu, says the Kunsthal is responsible for the poor security given to the loaned artworks. If the museum is found guilty, contend Dogaru's lawyers, it may have to pay some of the claims, the AFP reports. Dogaru's mother stated that she burned the paintings, but later retracted her claim.

“We can clearly speak of negligence with serious consequences,” said Dancu. ”If we do not receive answers about who is guilty, we are considering hiring Dutch lawyers to start a legal case in The Netherlands or in Romania.”